It is well known that solar power is derived by photovoltaic systems, solar panels made from silicon and other materials and thin film solar deployments. Solar power installations where one or more of these solar power gathering unit devices are tied together are referred to as ‘arrays’; are a method of generating clean energy that is used throughout the globe. Solar power generation, as mentioned previously, can come from thin film solar applications, panelized silicon crystal applications and also from passive solar design schemes and many other sources. The cost of solar power gathering systems has gone down in recent years while the efficiency of such systems has continued to improve. It is also well known that wind power turbines can generate power that can be delivered via interconnection to existing grid systems or can be used to power individual homes, businesses and utilities. Most, if not all wind power systems that are used to gather large amounts, in the Mega Watt range of power are large structure wind turbines many of which are at least 100 feet high. In the past, small wind powered turbines have also been placed high up from the ground usually at least 15 feet high. Also, most small wind power turbine systems are utilized to power a single home, business or elements of that home or business.
Currently, solar power creates under 10% of the energy market share in the United States. Isolated uses of solar power are effective, but there incremental installation does not create a convenient solar infrastructure. For wind power systems large wind installations in order of 100 foot or more sized turbines dot the landscape of the planet. These turbines are often positioned in remote fields out to sea or on private property away from public infrastructure. Small wind installations of turbines and other gathering devices in the 5 to 30 foot range are typically utilized in three deployments. The first deployment features clusters of small to mid sized turbines set up in remote windy areas such as the desert environment near Palm Desert in California. The second deployment features isolated powering of small homes and businesses such as those in remote artic or extreme cold climates where heating and cooling infrastructure does not exist, or is augmented at the micro use level for one home or business by small wind turbine implementation. The third deployment model features isolated powering of entities for government utilities such as isolated powering of single light stands at the Hanauma Bay National Park public parking lot in Oahu Hi. As of now, there are no known models for gathering wind power that may be reclaimed from moving vehicles. Projects for the reclamation of carbon and heat from water pipes and the like are under way commercially.
Conventional models have solar power being used to power individual homes and businesses via installations on those homes and businesses. Solar power plants are becoming more popular and new isolated site power plants are being developed in places like Korea where GE (General Electrical Company) is supplying panels for a new 3 megawatt facility project in Yong Gwang. Isolated solar panels are also in use on roadways to light signs, lights and power emergency telephones and telephone boxes. Conventional models for vehicles have vehicles outfitted with solar panels being used to power those same vehicles exclusively. Conventional wind models address power plant and isolated use models for the generation and distribution of wind power. Large turbines generate Megawatt volumes of power to be utilized locally or interconnected back to the grid system. Small wind generation systems are typically used to solve local power issues, such as street lights or home or business power needs as well as having the ability to be interconnected to a grid system for the purpose of selling the power generated by the wind gathering system to a public or private utility. Small solar and small wind deployments could be currently utilized on vehicles on a case by case basis based upon the vehicle owner purchasing and installing the available equipment installed on an isolated vehicle by vehicle basis.
Unfortunately, the lack of cohesive solar and wind gathering and distribution resources have limited solar and wind power to a single digit market shares of the overall energy use in the United States. The ideas of powering individual homes and businesses, while very effective, constitute incremental gains in the distribution and use of solar power. The same can be said for privately funded solar power plants because many of them must be built in remote, sunny, desert like locations far from easy access to the grid or direct power access to homes or businesses. Solar vehicles have been focused in a single priority to make vehicles run from the solar power that they are gathering, either solely, or via the use of a hybrid power system that combines other energy sources to power the vehicle.
Wind powered existing conventional uses have certain limitations in distribution and deployment. Large turbines have faced environmental and Defense Department concerns. Environmentalists fear that the noise and size of turbines will disrupt both scenic and habitat conditions in addition to threatening the well being of birds that may be caught in the large turbine blades. Department of Defense concerns have been raised over the large turbines interfering with radar signals and tracking. Large turbine systems that are placed far away from existing infrastructure also incur a large expense in the transportation or building of infrastructure to carry the power generated by the turbine system. Finally, the large turbine system represents a large investment for a single turbine that is a volatile investment in that if the wind is not present or wind currents change then the turbine would be viewed as a poor investment because it will not generate enough power. Also, if the turbine breaks for any reason it is going to produce zero power as it is a large and single entity. Large turbines also require labor intensive maintenance and monitoring. The life cycle for large wind turbines is 20 years and decommissioning and waste generated by manufacture, installation and decommissioning is another environmental issue to contend with. Small wind power utilized in isolated areas and for private homes, businesses and individual is a great way to introduce clean energy on a unit by unit grass roots level. The issue with isolated uses which the instant invention addresses is that isolated uses are isolated by definition. Isolated uses do not carry out the ability to directly power businesses or residential sites over a long stretch of land covering tens, hundreds, thousands or hundreds of thousands of miles providing easy access to direct powering of entities as well as multiple grid interconnection points.
Current models also require each individual vehicle owner to make an individual investment in wind power or solar power gathering devices in order to be able to install and generate power from such devices. This is a major impediment toward being able to create a large fleet of vehicles gathering energy from small wind and solar gathering mechanisms or devices. Another impediment is that the power generated from such systems requires a second device or hardware system in order to utilize, receive credit for energy gathered and economically benefit from the power that is derived by the wind and/or solar gathering system.